


City Lights and Tube Socks

by EchoTheStorm



Series: Parisian Holiday [1]
Category: Coraline (2009), Gravity Falls, ParaNorman (2012)
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-02-16
Updated: 2019-02-16
Packaged: 2019-10-29 22:15:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,241
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17816510
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/EchoTheStorm/pseuds/EchoTheStorm
Summary: Mabel didn't wear tube socks as often as she used to. Well, most people lose whatever their sense of style was back in their adolescence, but Mabel's never really lost her sense of quirkiness and Dipper's never really dropped the habit of practically never washing his clothes. Coraline figured it must've been a Pines thing. It was probably because of this, that when the three of them splurged out on a trip to France, she didn't really know what to expect. Inspired by 'Somewhere Only We Know' by Halsey.





	City Lights and Tube Socks

**Author's Note:**

> This is really old fanfiction (circa 2014). I'm really proud of what I wrote before I lost inspiration, and I'm kinda hoping that if I post this I'll be inspired to continue. ¯\\_(ツ)_/¯

For some, graduating college meant getting a job and finally getting ahead in life; for many, it meant catching up on sleep, unemployed and in debt; for Coraline Jones and Mabel and Dipper Pines, it meant pooling out the combined cash made by three young entrepreneurs and flying out to France for the summer, a whopping eight weeks lost in the City of Lights—among other areas. Mabel had talked Dipper into coming along with them, but he didn't seem as uninterested after she handed him a brochure.

“The catacombs! Can you believe it?” Dipper had shouted.”Think about what’s been going on down there! We're gonna see it all!”

“We'd better,” had been Coraline's reply. “This trip is fucking expensive.”

"Don't be such a downer, Cory," Mabel piped in, dropping an arm around the girl's shoulders and pulling her into a side-hug, pressing her cheek against hers.  
  
"I'm not!" Coraline protested. "I'm just saying, this trip had better be worth all that cash."  
  
"Oh, it will be," the twins chimed together, unsettling Coraline.  
  
"Trust me, with us around, it'll be way more exciting than seeing a few glass cases and statues." Dipper folded the brochure in half and pocketed it. "And we've got this to help us along," he added, patting his back pocket.  
  
"I don't see how useful you ass could be in any situation," Coraline said, smirking.  
  
"You know that's not what I meant!" Dipper said, face reddening.  
  
"Hey, now," Mabel chimed in, "Dipper's butt isn't _that_ bad." She grinned. "I'm sure he'll find a use for it somewhere."  
  
_"Mabel!"_  
  
"Never a dull moment with the Mystery Twins!" Mabel slung her other arm around Dipper, affectionately ruffling her brother's hair as a bell chimed overhead; a person over the speakers announced that their flight was now ready for boarding.

"Now let's hit it! To France!"

She had shouted the last part so loudly that the rest of the passengers on their flight spun their heads towards the group of three, but Mabel, being Mabel, was completely unabashed. Instead, she had summoned a godlike strength and hauled both Dipper and Coraline towards nonplussed woman checking tickets and passports.  
  
<><><>  
  
Fifteen hours later, a small group was huddled together at the front gates of the airport and waiting for a shuttle, baggage claimed and a mild case of jet lag taking over. Had they been allowed to bring liquids onto the flight, Coraline was sure Mabel would've brought a few gallons of Mabel Juice along with her, not that she wouldn't be up for making a "Paris Flavored" sample. Coraline grimaced at the thought.  
  
"Hey, what's wrong?" Mabel asked. "Don't worry, the bus'll be here soon. You'll be in the hotel, sleeping in no time. If you want, I could whip up some Mabel—"  
  
"No!" Coraline frowned at the look of uncharacteristically stunned silence on her friend's face. She coughed. "I mean, it's fine. I just need some good, old-fashioned sleep. Like your brother over here." She gestured towards Dipper, who was in the middle of a fairly large yawn, rubbing his eyes with one arm and putting all his weight onto a slightly battered suitcase.  
  
Mabel grinned and leaned over to poke Dipper in the ribs. "Same to you, bro-bro."  
  
"Ow! Hey!" Dipper immediately jerked up, covering the spot his sister had violated with his hand and knocking his suitcase over in the process. He groaned, then reached down to haul his luggage back up. "How do you even manage to stay this energetic? It's unnatural." he asked as he adjusted one of his backpack straps.  
  
"Simple, I generate my own energy. Mabel-power is the strongest force in the world! I thought you would've known that by now."  
  
"It never fails to amaze me," Dipper said, not missing a beat. "I thought the plane would've done it for you. You know, like when we were kids and went to Disney World."  
  
Mabel sighed exaggeratedly. "Oh, come on, Dipper, that doesn't count. We were, like, five."  
  
"Five-year-olds have a lot of energy. Did you forget how sugar-high you always seemed to be?"  
  
Mabel tisk-ed and shook her head, a smile unlike her usual face-splitting grins spreading across her face. "Oh, _Dipper_ ," she said, gently patting his shoulder. "Dipper, Dipper, _Dipper_ . There are just some things little brothers don't understand."  
  
"Are you—Seriously?!" Dipper sputtered, jumping away from Mabel. "You're using _that_ ?! Come on!"  
  
Mabel's shoulders shook as her laughter rang across the front gates.  
  
Coraline watched the two bicker, half curious about the way the siblings interacted, half wonderstruck by how full of life Mabel was, even after a fifteen-hour flight. The fact that she had also brought her brother back to life under the same circumstances was a feat in itself.  
  
The bus pulled up soon after, and weariness was starting to settle in for Coraline. When they all finally clambered onto the bus and plunked down onto their seats, Mabel had coaxed Coraline into using her lap as a pillow. It didn't take long for Coraline to give in and she quickly dozed off, lost in the comforting feeling of Mabel's fingers running through her hair.  
  
<><><>  
  
It was a good fifty-five minutes later when Coraline woke up. Too soon and too harshly, she felt a vigorous shaking at her arm and heard a voice loud enough to break bus etiquette at her ear.  
  
"Cory!" Mabel was practically shouting. "Wake up, we're here! Cory! _Coraline!_ "  
  
Coraline sprang out of her friend's lap. "Alright, alright, I'm awake, I'm awake!" She glared at Mabel, who reached over to poke a sleeping Dipper for the second time in this morning. _Wait._ Coraline checked her watch and groaned when she saw that the hands read 5:12. She slumped in her chair and watched as Mabel's poking quickly turned to vigorous prodding.  
  
"Honestly, Dipping Sauce, you can't be _that_ heavy of a sleeper," Mabel said, growing impatient. "Wake _up_ !" she whined.  
  
Dipper grunted, turned his head, and finally sat up. "Jesus! _What_ , Mabel? The bus is still moving!"  
  
Mabel initially raised her brows in surprise, but quickly became cross. "Oh, right, it's not as if we _just got to Paris or anything_ , my bad."  
  
That woke Coraline and Dipper. Simultaneously, they looked out of their respective windows. Outside of Dipper's were a row of cafés and shops. Outside of Coraline's, peeking out from above another set of shops, was the Eiffel Tower.  
  
Above, the sky was a deep navy blue, but it faded into a golden orange as it reached the horizon, with the early morning sun illuminating the great structure from below and highlighting the edges of the dark iron bars with a thin, but blazing white-yellow. The other buildings on the street obstructed the bottom of the tower, and the the bus' windows didn't allow for a view of the very top, but it was enough to see a portion of the age-old tower from a slightly worn out tour bus with smudged windows.  
  
Coraline stared at the tower, looking like a child passing the front gates of Disney World, all agape and wide-eyed and throughly wonderstruck, temporarily forgetting the weariness that was still tugging at her. Possibly like a five-year-old Mabel.  
  
But the twenty-one year old Mabel was more capable of moving in a captivated state than she was, it seemed, because when she felt a head rest on her shoulder and a voice murmuring, "I know, right? Isn't it amazing?" Coraline could only nod. The warm weight on her shoulder lifted a moment later and Coraline could suddenly hear Mabel's boisterous laughter behind her. She peeled her gaze away from the window and turned around to see that Dipper had surrendered to sleep again, curled around his backpack.  
  
"Poor guy," Mabel said, looking at Dipper with a look of exasperation and amusement, the look only siblings and couples seemed to be capable of making. Mabel turned to Coraline, still smiling. "When we get to the hotel, we can go out and explore the city. But Dipper's gonna need a power nap and some coffee, so it might be just us for now."  
  
"Okay," Coraline agreed. "But I might need a nap, too. Sleeping on a plane is nice and all, but I'll always prefer sleeping on a bed."  
  
"Aw, not you, too!" Mabel pouted. After a few minutes, she sighed. "Alright, I could probably use some sleep, too. But I still have more energy than both you and Dipper combined."  
  
Coraline scoffed. "That's a given. You're Mabel Pines and you're in a different country. You should be _buzzing_ with energy."  
  
"Haha, yeah, you're probably right."  
  
The conversation broke off from there, and Mabel turned back to Dipper, pulling a camera out of her bag.  
  
It suddenly occurred to Coraline that Mabel had been sitting still for her to sleep on her lap. Sure, she was vigorously shaken awake when they reached Paris, but that couldn't really be helped with Mabel's boundless energy. It was obvious in hindsight, but just wasn't something that she would've taken immediate notice to. By the looks of it, she hadn't been sleeping. She stared at Mabel with her eyebrows furrowed as she snapped a photo of her brother, wondering if it'd been hard for her to sit still.  
  
They passed a few more streets, Coraline catching a few glimpses of people going about their daily lives—shop owners opening their stores, elderly people taking early morning walks, even a few people riding their bikes to who-knows-where. Finally, the bus stopped outside a hotel.  
  
The hotel didn't look too bad, but it did look old and a little shabby from the outside. There were a few cracks running along the outer walls, with peeling paint and slightly rusted metal balconies. On the side of the building, there was an impressive amount of ivy growing, having already climbed more than halfway towards the roof. Coraline didn't know much about architecture—or anything, if she thought about it—but she knew that the design on the heavy oak doors at the entrance could be considered ancient, which was probably what prompted her to look up at the rooftops of the building when everyone began climbing out of the bus and retrieving their luggage from the luggage compartment. Sure enough, at the top of the hotel, Coraline could see three stone gargoyles perched on the front side of the hotel. But that could've been less because the building was old and more because it was French.  
  
"Come on, Cory," Mabel said, pushing Coraline's suitcase towards her. "I need someone to help me, here. I'm already taking care of the little bro."  
  
"'m not little," Dipper murmured from his position, half-leaning against Mabel.  
  
"See what I mean?" Mabel asked, rolling her eyes. Her eyes met Coraline's again and she grinned, making Coraline forget about her weariness. "C'mon."  
  
Coraline smiled tentatively and followed the rest of the group into the hotel lobby.  
  
Inside, the hotel was starkly different from the outside. The people who ran the hotel clearly kept up with the renovations: the floors were made up of fairly large, cream-colored tiles that had been given a very through polish; a ridiculously large crystal chandelier hung above their heads; directly below the chandelier was a coffee table made of dark oak, with three cushiony, red armchairs; the front desk, large and made of the same dark oak as the coffee table, was at the far side of the room, facing the doorway.  
  
The three of them had already agreed: Dipper would be getting his own room, and Mabel and Coraline would be sharing one. Mabel cracked a joke about Dipper being able to pull someone on the trip without interruption, then ignored his indignation and elbowed Coraline, saying that it was like they never left college. Coraline was wondering how the two of them were going to share the bed.  
  
After they checked in and got their keycards, the three headed towards the elevators to check their rooms, agreeing to meet at the foyer at noon. They parted ways when the elevator stopped on Dipper's floor.  
  
Coraline and Mabel didn't have any trouble finding their room, as it was the first door there after they turned the corner. As soon as they opened the door, Coraline was ready to crash. Of course, it was only then that she noticed that her stomach was rather empty. She ignored it, deciding that _needs must_ , and dragged her suitcase to the back corner of the room, deposited her bag on top of it, and fell face-first into the soft, cushion-y bed.  
  
"G'ni, Mahel," she mumbled into the pillow, despite more or less ignoring the girl she left standing at the doorstep, suitcase still in her hands. She fell asleep instantly.  
  
<><><>  
  
Coraline would've slept longer, but her stomach was having none of it. She woke up irritable and starving, with a mild headache. The clock on the bedside table said that it was eight and the room was empty. Her head was throbbing in pain, making her groan.  
  
Pressing against the side of her head that was bothering her, Coraline slid out of the bed, in need of a stretch, and walked over to where she plopped her backpack nearly three hours ago. She dug through it, finally pulling out a water bottle and took three big gulps of water.  
  
Coraline sat back down on the bed, only then remembering that they had booked two single bedrooms. She didn't have a problem with it, but she was positive that Mabel starfished. And were was Mabel? Her stomach growled loudly. Groaning, Coraline took another gulp of water, though she knew it'd do little to help, and stood up.  
  
She could go out and buy something, but that'd mean trying to navigate the foreign streets and bullshitting French, which she knew wouldn't bode well for her or her headache. Coraline wasn't too bad at it, and was one of the better students in French, but she knew that if she could barely conjugate verbs while alert and in class, asking for directions and ordering food with a headache would be too much. She considered room service, but decided against it, figuring that she'd be able to obtain cheaper food anyway.  
  
Eventually, she settled on going to the front desk to ask if there were any cafés nearby, and spent a good five minutes searching the room for her keycard before she remembered that she put it in her pocket in her sleep-deprived state. Frustrated, she walked towards the door, about to open it, when it opened in its own and smacked her in the face.  
  
"Ow! _Fuck!_ "  
  
"Sorry!" Mabel said, walking in and closing the door behind her. "Holy shit, are you okay?" The words tumbled out of her mouth once she saw the state Coraline was in.  
  
She walked past Coraline and placed a coffee cup and paper bag on the table. She came back, reaching out to Coraline.  
  
"Come on, you need to sit down."  
  
Mabel took one of Coraline's arms in her hands and gently tugged her towards the bed. Once she was sat down, Mabel was leaning over Coraline, examining the girl who wouldn't move her hands away from her head. She placed a hand on Coraline's forehead.  
  
"I didn't hit it that hard, did I?" she asked quietly.  
  
"No," Coraline replied, her eyes squeezed shut. "Headache. And door. Not a good mix."  
  
"Oh," Mabel said. "Gotcha."  
  
In an instant, she was at the back corner of the room, where she'd placed her stuff. She opened her suitcase and rifled through it, eventually pulling out a bottle and standing back up. Mabel walked back to Coraline and opened the bottle, shaking out two pills and handing them to her. Noticing the water bottle on the bedside table, she handed that to Coraline as well.  
  
"Take those," she said, sitting down beside her. "If you want, I can massage your head. It helps Dipper."  
  
Coraline swallowed the pills in a large mouthful of water, then shook her head. "No, it's fine."  
  
Mabel looked at Coraline's forehead. "That's gonna bruise," she said.  
  
"Don't worry about it," Coraline said dismissively. "All I really need right now is some food."  
  
"Well," Mabel nodded over to the paper bag and coffee, "there's a croissant in there. That coffee's for you, figured you'd need a pick-me-up."  
  
Coraline stood up and took two strides towards the bag. Snatching the paper bag and pulling out the decent-sized roll, she took to scarfing it down, finishing in five bites.  
  
Mabel watched Coraline, sat on the bed and swinging her legs. "Wow," she said, as Coraline took a sip of coffee. She stood up. "Let's go, you need more food and Dipper's gonna need some coffee."  
  
"Is it far?" Coraline asked, following Mabel out the door. "How'd you find the place? How long were you gone? I'm fine for now, I can wait until lunch. Let's just get some coffee for Dipper and—"  
  
"Hot Belgian waffles! You need to calm down," Mabel said, giving Coraline the look of exasperated amusement. "Hey, you wanna get some Belgian waffles?"  
  
Coraline stared at Mabel. " _Belgian_ waffles? In _France_ ?"  
  
"Good point. We should have crêpes, too. You wanna share?"  
  
"Alright."  
  
<><><>  
  
The café turned out to be only a few blocks away from the hotel; Coraline, despite her protests, turned out to be a lot hungrier than even she thought she was, and that was a large contributing factor to her headache. In no time, Mabel and Coraline were sitting across from each other with an empty plate that used to hold five crêpes and another that held two waffles; Coraline's headache was gone. They had shared the crêpes and the waffles, but fifteen minutes later, Coraline was eating ripped-off pieces from a blueberry muffin and Mabel was stirring a hot chocolate, topped off with a small mountain of whipped cream, a handful of mini marshmallows, and a very liberal amount of rainbow sprinkles.  
  
Mabel was staring off into space; her light brown eyes were unfocused and on Coraline's hands. She had that small smile on her face that never seemed to waver. Coraline wasn't sure if it would be alright to disrupt the relative silence of the café: soft music was tinkling through the speakers, the barista had just started brewing another pot of coffee, a man sat by the windows, ignoring his cooling breakfast as he flipped through the morning paper. She watched Mabel for a little longer, still debating whether starting a conversation would be a good idea. Finally, she made up her mind and cleared her throat.  
  
"You know, I used to think that sprinkles were actually grains of rice dipped in food coloring," Coraline said, eying Mabel's drink. She ripped the last portion of the top of her muffin off and popped it in her mouth.  
  
Mabel gave a small laugh, and the eyes that were unfocused just a few seconds ago were suddenly bright and on Coraline. It shouldn't have been as striking as it was. "I can see it. If I thought that when I was little, though, I'm pretty sure I'd be begging my parents to make colored rice for dinner."  
  
Coraline smiled at the thought. "I'm not sure I'd feel the same. My dad would probably try it, then add weird stuff like sweet potatoes and lima beans to it. He was always into experimenting with foods."  
  
"Oh, yeah, I remember that Christmas dinner. It was awesome!"  
  
"Well, I'm glad you liked it. The thing was weird."  
  
"Turkey and pudding isn't _that_ bad of a combination."  
  
Coraline rolled her eyes. "I can't believe you're defending the mixture of a roasted bird and a slimy desert, never mind that it was tapioca, but whatever. My dad likes you, too. He wears that sweater you made for him every Christmas, now."  
  
Mabel beamed. "Well, arts and crafts are my area of expertise."  
  
"There's no doubt about that. But is that all you're gonna do after we get back? Etsy and Pinterest?"  
  
Mabel shrugged. "I dunno. I've always figured that things'll sort themselves out in the end. And you really just have to focus on the now for the time being. I meant it when I said that this trip would be great. Well, when Dipper and I said it. You and me, we could've had fun ourselves, but without me around to keep him company… I dunno, Dipper can become kind of a hermit."  
  
"Like that summer vacation when you were twelve?"  
  
Mabel nodded. "Well, he was good for the most part. There were just times when I'd be out with Candy and Grenda, or going after some guy and he'd just be sitting up in our room or something, trying to figure out 'the mysteries of Gravity Falls.' We still went on a lot of weird, cool adventures, and we stuck by each other for the most part, but that was before we got older. Things change, y'know? It was an amazing summer, and I'm glad that it happened. I guess it's just that with school and different obsessions, you kind of start having less to connect with. We'll always have Gravity Falls, though. I was always kind of worried that we'd grow apart, or that I'd be left behind like…" Mabel shook her head. "But I guess those are just normal sibling relationship things. I don't think you'd really get it."  
  
"Sorry," Coraline said sympathetically. "But I know what it's like to have people not really have time for you."  
  
"Oh, yeah," Mabel said quietly. "How are your parents?"  
  
"They're good. Less busy now, but I've been busy with college, and now this. I have no idea what I'm gonna do when I get back. I'm probably gonna try for a job at Lory's, though."  
  
"The flower shop?"  
  
"The very one."  
  
"Well, good luck. There's no way you wouldn't be able to nail a job there, you're way too good with plants." Mabel took a sip from her hot cocoa. "But don't worry about that now. We're in Paris. We don't have to completely blow our money, but we should at least check out the shops. I mean, come on, it's Paris."  
  
Coraline shrugged. "Sure, why not. Just let me finish my muffin."  
  
<><><>  
  
The two of them made it back to their hotel room at eleven, laughing and carrying a few paper bags. Coraline bought a scarf and a snow globe of the Eiffel Tower. Mabel had somehow managed to find a plastic "ball" made to look exactly like a real potato and was going to give it to Waddles, who probably would've enjoyed it greatly in his prime. She also got a tube of glitter. Coraline had asked why, but never got a clear answer.  
  
They both deposited their bags and fell onto the bed.  
  
"So, are you gonna tell me why you got that tube of glitter now?"  
  
"Nope." Mabel checked her watch. "We should go down to the lobby in fifty minutes."  
  
"Oh, wait, we forgot the coffee for Dipper."  
  
Mabel waved her hand dismissively. "Pssh, he'll be fine. We'll just have lunch at the café, no biggie."  
  
Coraline got up from the bed and walked over to her suitcase. "So we have fifty minutes to kill. What'dya wanna do?"  
  
"I dunno," Mabel replied from the bed, stretching.  
  
"Well, you do that," Coraline called over her shoulder. "I'm gonna brush my teeth."  
  
"Cory, it's eleven in the morning."  
  
"Maby, none of us have seen a toothbrush in over twenty-four hours. I don't know about you, but that doesn't sound very good to me."  
  
Mabel sat up from the bed, looking at Coraline seriously. "I did not wear braces until I was seventeen for nothing. Just look at these pearly whites!"  
  
Coraline laughed. "Your 'pearly whites' probably smell like morning breath times ten. Come on, brushing your teeth never does a person wrong."  
  
Mabel pouted and walked over to her suitcase. "Fine, fine."  
  
"That's the spirit!"  
  
<><><>  
  
"Do you think he overslept?" Coraline asked Mabel, who was busy pacing and chewing on a lock of hair. She didn't reply and kept pacing the lobby floor, getting progressively forceful in step as time wore on.  
  
Mabel and Coraline had made it down to the lobby with five minutes to spare, but fifteen minutes later, Dipper still hadn't shown up. It wasn't too long after that that Mabel began pacing.  
  
Finally, she stopped pacing and threw her hands up in exasperation. "This is so like Dipper!" She spat the wet clump of hair out of her mouth. "He never gets enough sleep as it is. We shouldn't have planned to do anything today besides sleep and eat."  
  
"Well, why don't we?" Coraline asked from her spot leaning against one of the armchairs.  
  
"Because!" Mabel cried. "We're in Paris! And if he isn't here, we might as well go out ourselves. Maybe we should check his room, first? He shouldn't be so late unless he's sleeping in. Man, I could've taken a shower!"  
  
Coraline snorted at her last comment. The two had been disagreeing on whether or not Mabel would have the time for a shower after they had both brushed their teeth. Coraline had kept reminding Mabel of her typical, forty-minute showers and Mabel had kept saying she could make time. Eventually, the two realized that they had wasted fifteen minutes and called it quits, but not before Mabel whined that Coraline was just as gross as Dipper. Coraline replied by tossing Mabel's keycard at her and opening the door, claiming that they were going to be late.  
  
"You know what, I'm just gonna go and take a shower now. Can you just go and check Dipper's room?"  
  
"Sure," Coraline replied, eager to do something besides stand around.  
  
The two barely made a move towards the elevators when one of the lobby doors swung open.  
  
"Mabel! Coraline!" Dipper shouted across the lobby, alarming the few people in the room. He jogged over to them.  
  
"What happened to you?" Coraline asked the same time Mabel asked, "Where have you been?"  
  
Dipper made it over to the two and instantly braced his hands over his knees. "I've—woke up—coffee—met someone—lost track of time," he managed between pants. "Sorry, won't happen again."  
  
"You've met someone?" Mabel asked, her distress from a few minutes ago forgotten.  
  
Dipper scratched the back of his neck, flushing slightly. "Yeah, I—"  
  
"You've met someone and you _ditched them_ ?"  
  
"I realized I was late and—"  
  
"Dipper! Don't you realize? This could've been your chance for a Parisian romance! And a summer romance! That's _two_ romances wrapped into one!"  
  
"Mabel—"  
  
"You can't just _leave them_ without getting their number, Dipper! That's not how—where'd you run from? Am I gonna have to get involved?" Mabel cracked her knuckles and eyed her brother. "Show me this coffee-shop person."  
  
Coraline was biting her lip to keep from laughing, both at the exchange and the look of unsettlement on Dipper's face. His eyes were wide and unblinking, his cheeks were flushed, and he was shaking his head frantically.  
  
"No, no no no no no. No, I'm good. Don't do this. Please? We're in Paris, can't we just go see the Tower or the Louvre or _anything else_ ?"  
  
Mabel wasn't swayed. "You really like this person, don't you?" Her eyes widened. "Was it love at first sight?"  
  
"What! No!" Dipper said, scandalized. "I tried ordering a coffee, I forgot the French word for 'sugar,' and the guy behind me jumped in and helped— _that's all_ !"  
  
"It's 'sucre,' Dipper," Coraline jumped in. "And where's the coffee?"  
  
"Well, we were talking and I realized that I was late and then—" Dipper slapped a palm to his forehead. "I left my coffee with him."  
  
"Because you were too busy talking to a guy!" Mabel squealed. "You're in luuurve!"  
  
"Mabel—"  
  
"You mean he's in 'Lourve?'" Coraline asked, grinning.  
  
"Coraline!"  
  
"Yes!" Mabel chimed. "Oh man, twelve-year-old Mabel is so jealous right now. Well, twenty-one-year-old Mabel is, too, but not as much. Come on," Mabel said as she grabbed Dipper's hand, "we can't lose him!"  
  
Once again, that surprising Mabel-strength took over and dragged Dipper out of the hotel lobby. The few people in the lobby who had been silently watching the exchange turned back to their own activities, and Coraline followed the twins out of the lobby, laughing.  
  
<><><>  
  
The guy had turned out to be a tall, friendly guy with tattoos and spiky hair named Norman. He was studying abroad as a film major; based on the tattoos and the snippets of conversation Coraline picked up, he was into horror films.  
  
He seemed interesting, though Mabel was adamant about leaving Dipper and Norman alone to each other, so it wasn't long after the three had caught up to Norman exiting a café that Mabel pushed Coraline into the café to get the two talking again.  
  
That was why Coraline found herself sitting across from Mabel in a small café table for the second time that morning. The only difference was that Mabel was grinning ear to ear and fighting herself to not stare at the new couple through the window, and failing every time.  
  
"Oh, I wish I were him right now," Mabel sighed wistfully.  
  
"I don't see why not, Norman seems like a cool dude."  
  
"No, I mean—you know, I've always been this hopeless romantic. I wish I fell in love with someone during a summer in Paris."  
  
Coraline laughed. "They _just met_ , Mabel. I don't think you can say that they've fallen in love." She glanced out the window. "Though I admit that they do look good together."  
  
Mabel's eyes flicked over to meet Coraline's. In the light from the sun shining through the café window, they looked almost hazel. Coraline was oddly transfixed for a moment. "That's the idea," Mabel murmured and moved her gaze back to the pair outside. "Look at them, you can tell they've got something going on—a spark. It's really sweet. Especially for Dipper. You know he's not smooth with anyone, but you can tell he's comfortable with Norman."  
  
Coraline agreed, Dipper's face was only slightly tinged pink and he wasn't wiping his palms on his shorts the way she saw him do whenever he talked to anyone he even remotely liked. Her gaze went back to Mabel. The run from the hotel to the café was exerting enough to bring a flush to Mabel's round cheeks, emphasizing the slight freckles across her nose and cheeks. She was still panting, her full lips slightly parted as she stirred her iced tea.  
  
"Oh look, they're leaving together!"  
  
"Huh? Oh." Coraline followed Mabel's gaze out the window; indeed, Dipper and Norman were walking down the street, hands linked together.  
  
"Aww, aren't they adorable together?" Mabel cooed.  
  
"Yeah," Coraline agreed. She turned back to her friend. "But if they're going out, what about our plans?"  
  
"What?" That seemed to have snapped Mabel out of her daze. "Oh. Oh, _right_ . Well," she took a large swig of her iced tea and wiped her mouth with the back of her hand, "we basically said that we should go have fun on our own if Dipper turned out to be busy. He's clearly busy, so, it's just gonna be us. You up for it?"  
  
Coraline stood up from the table and shoved her hands into her pockets. "Sure."  
  
"Great! Let's go! _Allons-y!_ "


End file.
